Motor vehicle exhaust system components are supported on the vehicle substructure by suspension elements such as elastic rings in order to reduce to a minimum the level of engine vibrations that find their way into the vehicle floor and the vehicle interior by way of the exhaust system. In order to isolate the exhaust system vibrationally as much as possible from the vehicle floor, the elastic rings must, of necessity, exhibit a relatively high degree of elasticity. On the other hand, because of their considerable weight, exhaust systems must be secured to the vehicle floor in a relatively rigid manner, for if the excursions of the mounting elements are too great, the exhaust conduits may be caused to strike against the floor or other vehicle components.
The arrangement disclosed in German publication DE-OS No. 31 37 746 is an attempt to reconcile these conflicting objectives in that an intermediate mass is provided which is disposed in each of the elastic elements. This intermediate mass is adapted to oscillate in the resonance range in the opposite sense of the exhaust system. The advantage of this arrangement is that it provides a cancelling effect in the resonance range, but outside of the resonance range the phase shift will move towards zero and, instead of absorbing the vibrations, the arrangement will cause an amplitude addition. Since the resonance range covers only a small portion of the entire frequency range which is encountered, the noise level in the passenger compartment, instead of being decreased, is being raised over a substantial portion of the engine speed range.